Bertelsmann AG (Research discontinued)

Synopsis

Bertelsmann is a multinational media conglomerate providing information, education and entertainment. It began as a book publisher before expanding into newspaper publishing in 1862. During the 1980s and 90s, the group expanded across media, from book publishing into broadcast media, music and the Internet. Random House was established in 1998, and Bertelsmann became the largest book publisher in the English speaking world. The company united with America Online in 1995 to form AOL Europe, and in 1999 founded bol.com (Bertelsmann Online). Its holdings in AOL Europe were sold in 2002.

Table of Contents

• 1. Synopsis
• 2. Company information
  • 2.1 Year 2002 results
• 3. Company Structure
  • 3.1 Bertelsmann Capital
  • 3.2 Random House
  • 3.3 Gruner + Jahr
  • 3.4 BMG
  • 3.5 RTL Group
  • 3.6 BSpringer (sold)
  • 3.7 Bertelsmann Arvato AG
  • 3.8 DirectGroup Bertelsmann
• 4. Internet
  • 4.1 E-commerce and BeCG
  • 4.2 Broadband Group
  • 4.3 Bertelsmann mediaSystems (BmS)
  • 4.4 Napster
  • 4.5 America Online (AOL)
  • 4.6 Lycos Europe
  • 4.7 Other Internet operations
• 5. Contact details

• Table 1 – Revenue for years ending June – 1997–2002
• Table 2 – Revenue by business area – 2002
• Table 3 – Revenue by region - 2002
• Table 4 – Corporate divisions and ownership

• Exhibit 1 – Bertelsmann AG at a glance
• Exhibit 2 – Selected publishers in Random House showing location and ownership
• Exhibit 3 – Selected Gruner + Jahr magazines and newspapers publishers
• Exhibit 4 – Selected BMG recording and publishing companies
• Exhibit 5 – Main subsidiaries of RTL Group showing location and % ownership
• Exhibit 6 – Main subsidiaries of BArvato
• Exhibit 7 – Main subsidiaries of DirectGroup Bertelsmann